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Didn t have the guts. - Suspended councillor s final complaint revealed
2 Mar, 2021 07:32 AM
4 minutes to read
Waikato Regional councillor Fred Lichtwark said he was punished for challenging the council s governance processes. Photo / Supplied
Waikato Regional councillor Fred Lichtwark said he was punished for challenging the council s governance processes. Photo / Supplied
Herald reporter based in HamiltonNikki.Preston@nzme.co.nz
A suspended councillor accused a colleague of not having the guts to talk to him in person and being a dirty politician - it was the third and final complaint made about his abusive behaviour.
But ostracised Waikato Regional councillor Fred Lichtwark told the Herald the whole investigation was an example of how to get shafted when you fall out of favour after he challenged councillors about the council s governance processes.
“I personally have sat on a porch with a staff member, with a man saying he was going inside to get a gun to kill us both. “I have personally been sitting with staff who have been threatened to be killed, four times over seven years.” A recent report recorded 43 incidents of threats, aggression, or violence involving the council in the past four years – three relate to gun shots in the vicinity of work. Regional council staff, in the Maritime and Incident Response Teams, already wear body cameras but can choose when and where to use them. Legal advice considered by the council in December showed the policy could breach the Bill of Rights by invading the privacy of both members of the public and staff.